JEFF EDELSTEIN: Red light cameras are anti-American

Oh yeah, Reed. You may be a hotshot state assemblymen ó and quite frankly, love the work youíre doing there ó but itís in your role as Lawrence Township prosecutor that Iím coming atícha for.

Thatís right, Reed: I got a red light camera ticket. Well, if weíre being technical about it, my wife got the ticket. Itís her second. The first one, well Ö yeah. Guilty. But this one? Ticky-tack. And Iím coming to fight it. Iím on the docket, baby. Watch out.

Advertisement

So.

So now that I have Reed Gusciora quaking in his boots ó I mean, when I walk in a courtroom, Iím like the Teflon Don, smirking for the cameras ó let me tell you the real reason Iím here: To congratulate another New Jersey lawmaker, guy by the name of Mike Doherty, a state senator who introduced a bill last week that would completely rewrite the playbook on these ridiculous, anti-American red light cameras.

Basically, Dohertyís bill would redirect all the money municipalities collect from these cameras to the stateís highway safety fund.

ďDespite growing proof that red light cameras have failed at their primary goal of improving driver safety, local officials continue to defend the cameras,Ē said Doherty. ďItís clear that many mayors and council members would rather have red light cameras ticket revenues for their budgets than safer roads for our families.Ē

Like Lawrence, for instance. Police Chief Daniel Posluszny stopped by the town council meeting last week and informed the township that accidents at the Bakers Basin/Route 1 intersection have gone up since the installation of the cameras in 2011. And get this: Last year, according to published reports, the cameras brought in over $600,000 of revenue for the township.

Last summer, when I spoke to Gusciora about his feeling on the cameras, he told me he was fine with the law, saying it was ďerected because of a lot of accidentsĒ at this particular intersection and that itís there ďfor the right reasons.Ē

And I donít even disagree with the above: If there was a way to cut down on accidents by issuing tickets, well, how can I argue against it? But this red light camera? And other red light cameras across the country? Theyíre simply causing more accidents. The ďwhyĒ is simple, as evidenced by my wifeís ticket.

Each summons comes with a video link. In my wifeís case, she went straight through the yellow light, and just as she was going through, it turned red. She got through the intersection well before the light turned green going the other way.

Could she have stopped? Sure. By standing on the brakes. And if there was someone behind her, she definitely wouldíve gotten rear-ended. No question about it. She was with our two kids in the backseat. So: Run through a yellow light LIKE EVERYONE DOES ALL THE TIME BECAUSE ITíS SAFE or slam on the brakes and risk getting smacked from behind. A no-brainer.

So Iím going to fight the ticket, not only because Iím right, but because the law is stupid. Bravo to Doherty for introducing the bill. Letís see if the rest of the legislature has the stones to see it through.

ďThis legislation puts to test the claims of mayors who say they only want red light cameras for their supposed safety benefits,Ē Doherty said. ďIím willing to bet that no local official will continue to fight for the right to install or keep red light cameras once the flow of money into town coffers disappears.Ē